Google
 

April 14, 2009

Bisi Bele Huli Anna




Almost everytime I visit my parents, I ask for this dish. On some days, I get potato roast. On some, I get pachadi. On some days I get both. This picture doesn't capture the essence of this dish. But it is easily my favourite one pot meal. And a very tasty one at that. No trip home is complete without a meal that comprises the well know Bisi Bele Huli Anna. This is a recipe that is very sacred to me. I don't know for how long it has been in my family. I now share it with you.


1/2 cup Toor Dal

1/2 cup Rice

1 cup Mixed Vegetables (Carrot, Beans, Peas, Ash gourd)

1/4 cup Peanuts

2 tbsp Tamarind Paste

Salt to taste


For the masala:

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

4 Red Chillies

1 tsp Urad Dal

1 tsp Chana Dal

1/4 tsp Cumin Seeds

1/4 tsp Fenugreek Seeds

1 tbsp Peppercorns

2 tsp Coriander Seeds

1/4 cup Coconut or Copra, roasted

1 tsp Oil


For the tempering:

1 tsp Ghee or Oil

1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

7-8 Curry Leaves

Coriander Leaves for garnish


Pressure cook the rice, dal, vegetables and peanuts. When done, mash the rice and dal well.


In a small kadhai, heat the teaspoon of oil. Add the asafoetida and the red chillies and fry until the red chillies turn bright. Add the urad and chana dals, cumin, coriander, peppercorns and fenugreek seeds. Add the roasted coconut (or Copra) and take off the flame. Grind to a chutney like consistency.


In a large vessel, heat the ghee and add the mustard seeds. When the mustard splutters, add the asafoetida and the curry leaves. Add the vegetables, peanuts, salt, ground paste and tamarind paste. Add about a cup of water. Mix well. Add the mashed rice and dal to this mixture. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves.


This is the perfect Sunday meal. I'd call it the south Indian's answer to the Rajma rice tradition. This is my way of celebrating the New Year. Happy New Year folks! Happy Vishu, Bihu, Baisakhi and Poila Baishakh (and any other festival that I am missing out). Iniya Puttandu Nalvazhtukkal.

21 comments:

FH said...

Happy Vishu/New year to you too. BBB looks fab, I must try your version too, new recipes are always welcome here! :)

Pooja said...

Happy Vishu..Looking yumm..

chef and her kitchen said...

BisiBelibath is my favourite too!!n Happy New year.
Try to visit my blog @
http://thechefandherkitchen.blogspot.com/

Arundathi said...

Love Bisibele - mine looks very different from yours! Happy New Year to you!

Raaga said...

@Ashakka: Thanks. Do try this and let me know :)

@Pooja: Thanks and same to you.

@Pratibha: You have a great blog going. Thanks

@Anu: Same to you. :-) I love this dish.

A_and_N said...

BBB is a huge fave at home too! :) My granny's was the best ever.

Priya Suresh said...

BBB my fav, looks delicious.WIshing happy new year to u & ur family:)

Gita Jaishankar said...

Happy New Year Raaga, lovely dish ideal for the occasion!

sra said...

This is the Spouse's favourite! Last week we were in Tirumala and we got this as prasadam. My dad was very glad he didn't go into the other queue where they were doling out curd rice!!!

Unknown said...

Happy New Year Raaga. Thanks for sharing your family's favorite!

Uj said...

I just got a packet of Bise bele bhath.. I have never made it .. It is my hubby's fav.. planning to make it tonight for dinner :D Thanks I was planning to look into blogs for recipe but when I came here was surprised.. Hope you had good vishu

Pavithra Kodical said...

Happy Ugadi..Your version of bisibele huli anna is different.Will try :)

delhibelle said...

I adore BBB..Thanks for sharing your family recipe.

Miri said...

Thanks for sharing your family recipe! BB has a very funny connotation to me - when I was newly married, on a particularly long day when there wasn't much time before the next meal, when I would ask hubby what he would like - he would say, anything simple - bisibele bhath?

And I would be like "huh?" - but whatever, make it anyway. Then one day I told him - it will take so much time, its already 1pm and we are starving so why would you suggest that?

And he says - really? I thought it's like khichdi - just cook the sambar and rice together instead of separately and you have bisibele bhath :roll eyes:!!

Miri

Raaga said...

Thanks everyone :) Hope you had a good festival too.

@Miri: I am laughing... a bachelor classmate once told me he makes sambar rice by putting rice, dal, vegetables and tamarind all together in the cooker... I asked him how the dal got cooked in the tamarind...and he was like, "Do I look like I care?" :-)

S can be like that sometimes... make something simple... rice dal and vegetable :-) and to me, that's about complex as it gets :-)

Jayashree said...

Happy Vishu to you too.
BBB is a classic favourite here....like your version.

lubnakarim06 said...

Oh wow this looks new to me.....Sounds yum with all those spices and veggies...

Vaishali said...

Definitely a huge favorite in my home. Your version looks delicious, Raaga.

Sri said...

This is one of my fav dishes. Just that I make it a little differently. I make the masala in the dry form instead of making it into a paste. (as the paste usually takes more time to cook, whereas the dry masala makes the raw smell go faster). Plus I add the tamarind paste in the rice and dal with veg and add the masala. I even temper it with mustard seed and some dry masala fried in ghee. This gives a distinct flavor to this dish.

Lakshmi said...

BBB is my favorite! Potato Chips, Raita and BBB are enough to get into party mood :D. That bowl of BBB looks yummy.

Raaga said...

LG: let's party!